Police technology 'future' here today with body cameras

Monday

Jan 27, 2014 at 5:39 PMJan 28, 2014 at 10:56 AM

The eyes have it, at least as far as some law enforcement officers are concerned now that small, body-mounted cameras can record everything that happens during the stickier situations they might encounter.

By Julie Murphyjulie.murphy@news-jrnl.com

PALM COAST — The eyes have it, at least as far as some law enforcement officers are concerned now that small, body-mounted cameras can record everything that happens during the stickier situations they might encounter. Ten such cameras recently were provided to motorcycle deputies with the Flagler County Sheriff's Office. “We primarily have the daytime shift outfitted at this point in time,” said sheriff's Cmdr. Bob Weber. “The goal is to have them for everyone on the road and all nine corrections officers because they have to do things like cell extractions.”The cameras, manufactured by Taser International, are nearly identical to those being used for the past 18 months by officers with the Daytona Beach Police Department. The cameras' capabilities became well-known in November with the release of video footage of one-time football star Jermaine Green moments before he was shot by police as he held his girlfriend, Katrina Johnson, in a choke hold and was about to plunge a knife into her chest.Cameras worn by Daytona Beach Officers Richard Maher and Kevin Connelly captured everything that happened Sept. 25, 2013: Green's attack on Johnson, as well as the seven shots fired at the former athlete. “This is the wave of the future,” Daytona Beach Police Chief Mike Chitwood said. “It's (the use of the technology) in its infancy and there can be some privacy issues, and you have to be aware of that. It captures everything — the good, the bad, and the ugly.” Other dramatic footage from Chitwood's department has been used in promotions by Taser International and is easily found on YouTube. “We had a domestic and we're approaching and can hear the guy yelling, 'I'm gonna kill you (expletive deleted),'” Chitwood said. “He's on top of her choking her, and he's so into what he's doing that he doesn't even realize we've kicked the door in.” Weber said footage captured by the Flagler Sheriff's Office since November, when deputies started wearing the cameras, has been less dramatic. Deputy Otis Gilyard said that doesn't make it less valuable. The cameras run continuously but only record sound with the images if an officer hits the record button. It even records the 30 seconds prior to the record button being activated. The goal of both the Flagler County Sheriff's Office and the Daytona Beach Police Department is to outfit nearly everyone, which means another 80 cameras for the Sheriff's Office and another 65 for Chitwood's officers. The first 10 cameras for Flagler's deputies were paid by the city of Palm Coast, Weber said, from traffic ticket revenues. The cameras cost from $400 to $1,500 apiece, depending on the unit and the features desired.The expense, Chitwood said, isn't so much in what the units cost initially but in “administrative costs” associated with storage of video clips, which he plans to keep for 37 months, a month longer than the three-year statute of limitations.“Those (storage) costs can run into hundreds of thousands of dollars, Chitwood said.That footage is then uploaded “to the cloud” — evidence.com — a safe off-site location that ensures footage cannot be altered, he said. “I've used this for traffic stops and DUIs,” Gilyard said of his camera. “It will go into court.”For the most part, Gilyard said, motorists have been more polite once they realize film is rolling, so to speak.“I tell them they might as well smile — they are on camera,” he said. “I really haven't had any issues since I've been wearing this on my head.”Officers have a choice of affixing the cameras to their shirts or to their glasses.“I think it's easier to have it on my glasses,” Gilyard said. “It points everywhere I look. If I had it on my body, I would have to reposition myself to make sure I got everything.”Chitwood said people haven't necessarily been more polite but the number of complaints against officers have dropped.“Once they realize everything was recorded, they often drop the complaint,” the chief said. “My experience has been that 90 percent of officers do their jobs correctly, and they want people to see that.” The times when the cameras are rolling and everything isn't just right provides administrative options that otherwise might not be available, he said.“Some departments are putting the cameras on officers that are getting a lot of complaints made against them,” Chitwood said, noting that there are times when dismissal is the only reasonable option. “Sometimes it points out an area where you might need to do some additional training. It's a good tool.”